Guest Post: New York Times Bestselling author Kate Beaton shares the making of King Baby!

We are delighted to have our very first guest post from Kate Beaton, 
the New York Times Bestselling author illustrator of The Princess and the Pony. 

Kate joins us to talk about her brand new book King Baby!

I first drew King Baby in 2011, in a coffee shop:

Someone made a thing about it, very helpful:

 But King Baby was just an idea with funny drawings for a long time. 

Like this one. 

 And these two.

And then my nephew was born and I went to visit him for the first time. 

 Here he is (in 2015):

I drew comics about it:

  

And then King Baby became a book! 

Here are a few more sketches. 

Behind the Scenes!

I made a version of King Baby that was from the parent's perspective.  It was more tender, but not so funny as King Baby narrating. There's a preview below but you can download it by clicking HERE.

 

King Baby is OUT NOW!

A Child of Books Tour: Meet Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston!

Sunday 18th September

CBI Conference, Dublin

16:30 Keynote speech with Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston

Tickets: http://childrensbooksireland.ie/conferenceticket-nonmembers/

Monday 19th September

Ulster Museum, Belfast

With No Alibis bookshop

19:00 Oliver Jeffers and Bookshop owner David in conversation

SOLD OUT – availability for signing after the event

Information: http://noalibis.com/default.asp

Tuesday 20th September

The Atrium, Liverpool

With Waterstones Liverpool

19:00 Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston in Conversation

Tickets: https://www.waterstones.com/events/oliver-jeffers-and-sam-winston-discuss-a-child-of-books/liverpool

Thursday 22nd September

St Boswells, Scottish Borders 

With Mainstreet Trading Co 

19:00 Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston in Conversation

Tickets: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/mainstreettrading

Friday 23rd September

Edinburgh Bookshop

14:30 Signing only – no ticket required

Information: http://www.edinburghbookshop.com/index.html

St Augustine's Church, Edinburgh

With Blackwells Edinburgh

19:00 Oliver Jeffers, Sam Winston and Eoin Colfer in conversation

Tickets: http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/stores/events/  

Monday 26th September

Waterstones Piccadilly, London 

19:00 Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston in conversation

Tickets: https://www.waterstones.com/events/a-child-of-books-with-oliver-jeffers-and-sam-winston/london-piccadilly

Saturday 1st October

Easons O'Connell St, London

11:00 Signing only – no ticket required

You can also catch Oliver discussing his book Imaginary Fred at the following events:

Saturday 24^th September

Newcastle with Seven Stories

11:30 Oliver Jeffers and Eoin Colfer

Tickets: http://www.sevenstories.org.uk/whats-on/events/122878/author-and-illustrator-event-imaginary-fred-with-oliver-jeffers-and-eoin-colfer

Sunday 25^th September

Wimbledon BookFest, London

10: 30 Oliver Jeffers and Eoin Colfer

Tickets: https://www.wimbledonbookfest.org/Events/2016Events/EoinColferandOliverJeffers.aspx

Brand new from Jill Murphy: Meltdown!

Earlier this year we celebrated 30 years of Jill Murphy's picture book classic Five Minutes Peace, and this month we're delighted to share Jill's brand new and perfectly observed family comedy - Meltdown! 

A baby bunny rabbit and her mum on the supermarket shop… 

a shop which doesn’t quite go to plan!

Ruby the rabbit likes to be helpful but she often gets a bit overexcited… especially in the supermarket. Crisps are so CRUNCHY! Tins of beans are fun to ROLL! And when Ruby sees a cake, a cake in the shape of a cute pink piggy, she wants it… she wants it now. 

Introducing Ruby, a completely lovable new bunny, Jill Murphy observes the oh-so familiar supermarket sulk with all of her trademark warmth and wit, and perfectly depicts family life – in all its hectic glory – once again.

"The sheer joy of a Jill Murphy picture book lies in the way that she successfully conjures up the frustration and exhaustion of raising small children while infusing each adventure with unconditional love. Her books about the Large elephant family are modern classics and this latest deserves similar status.

Mummy rabbit takes toddler Ruby to the supermarket to ‘help’ her do the shopping but inevitably the outing descends into a terrifying, embarrassing, tantrum-filled nightmare.

Ruby’s metamorphosis from willing, trilling assistant into mad-eyed, arch-backed demon is brilliantly handled both in words and pictures and the warm, witty ending will draw a tender sigh of recognition from all parents."

The Daily Mail

About the Author

As a Child

Jill was born and brought up in London and says that she can’t remember a time she wasn’t a storyteller/illustrator. “My earliest memory (my mum tells me I was two), is sitting on the kitchen floor surrounded by sheets of drawings.” By the age of six, Jill was stapling her own little illustrated storybooks together – her mum kept them all and she still has them today! “It’s great fun to see them all these years later,” she says. “You can see how my handwriting and drawing improved as time went by.” Jill loved primary school, where, she says “I could always draw my way out of trouble if we had a tricky history project!” – but she went to a very strict academic convent which she hated for the first year. “The nuns didn’t care that I could draw fantastic pictures,” she says. “Where was my physics homework!?”

As an Adult

Jill left school at sixteen, and went on to attend both Chelsea Art School and Croydon Art School. Two years later, she finished her first novel The Worst Witch, about a little witch who doesn’t fit in at her new school – a story she says was heavily based on her experiences at the convent. She sent it off to three big London publishers, who all turned it down, and Jill “put it in a drawer and decided to concentrate on other things instead.” After a spell working as a nanny and in a children’s home, which she loved, Jill had a phone call from a small publisher interested in The Worst Witch. It was printed when she was twenty-four, sold out almost immediately, and Jill knew for sure she wanted to follow a career as an author/illustrator.

As an Artist

Jill has written and illustrated numerous books since The Worst Witch was published, including three more books about little witch Mildred Hubble. Jill’s work has won her numerous prizes and awards; her first picture book, Peace at Last was Commended for the Kate Greenaway Medal and she was shortlisted for the same Medal for A Quiet Night In, the first of the Mr and Mrs Large picture books about the endearing domestic chaos of an elephant family. The other titles are A Piece of Cake, Five Minutes Peace (Winner of the Best Books for Babies Award and shortlisted for the Children’s Book Award), All in One Piece (Highly Commended for the Kate Greenaway Award and shortlisted for the Children’s Book Award) and Mr Large in Charge. The stories have now been adapted for television. The Last Noo-noo, about a small monster called Marlon, won three awards, including the Smarties Book Prize, and Marlon returns again in the acclaimed All For One.

“Jill Murphy deserves a constellation of gold stars for consistently writing picture books that please children and enrapture parents” 

The Observer

Mango and Bambang Tiny Tapir Trouble out this Month!

Mango Allsorts is a girl good at all sorts of things, not just karate and chess.

Bambang is an Asian Tapir and most definitely Not-A-Pig

And September is the month in which Mango and Bambang 

embark on their THIRD book of adventures!

Meet Guntur

A fluffy-eared cutie-pie! But appearances may be deceiving...

In this third collection of stories, a tiny, mischievous tapir 

comes to stay and causes trouble between Mango and Bambang. 

How will the friends sort out this muddle?

We filmed a interview with creators Polly Faber and Clara Vulliamy where 

you can learn all about the inspiration behind Mango and Bambang.

And, in case you are lucky enough to have a tapir come to stay 

click HERE to download your very own Top Tapir Tip sheet. 

And click HERE to find out how to make your very own Mango and Bambang theatre.

Competition Time!

In celebration of Mango and Bambang Tiny Tapir Trouble we are offering three lucky readers the chance to win a Mango and Bambang book bundle featuring all three wonderful Mango and Bambang books plus a Tiny Tapir Trouble poster! Closing date 7/10/16.

Email competitions@walker.co.uk with the subject line Mango and Bambang to win!

'Real charm ... reminiscent of Paddington' The Sunday Times

September Publication Party!

We have so many incredible books publishing today 

so we thought we'd round up a list of our newbies. 

The Little Adventurers: Leafy the Pet Leaf, Elissa Elwick & Phillip Ardagh

If you're brave, helpful, honest, good to your planet and kind to animals (even ones that don't do much... like boring worms) then you, too, can be a LITTLE ADVENTURER.

King Baby, Kate Beaton

I am King Baby! You have been waiting for me. 

I will give you many blessings, for King Baby is generous...

Meltdown, Jill Murphy

From the creator of the Large Family series comes another perfectly observed family comedy about a baby bunny rabbit and her mum on the supermarket shop ... a trip which doesn't go quite to plan!

A Child of Books, Oliver Jeffers & Sam Winston

A beautiful, poignant and timely manifesto for the myriad rewards 

of reading and sharing the enjoyment of stories. 

Mango and Bambang Tiny Tapir Trouble, Polly Faber, Clara Vulliamy

Mango and Bambang's adventures continue in the third book of 

this charming illustrated series about a little girl and a tapir. 

Introducing Walker Studios 

 "books for book-lovers".

The ethos behind the imprint is engaging design, high-quality illustration and superior production values. It will feature books by current Walker authors and illustrators as well as debut books and artists in translation. 

We're kicking off our launch month with two glorious titles.

The Singing Bones, Shaun Tan 

Shaun Tan fans get to see his extraordinary talent applied to sculpture in this award-winning, lavishly presented collection of art based on fairy tales told by the Brothers' Grimm.

Animals, Ingela P Arrhenius

Over 30 different animals are illustrated in striking graphic style by 

Ingela P Arrhenius in this stunning gift book. 

Don't miss these titles coming soon!

 Time Now to Dream, Timothy Knapman, Helen Oxenbury 

From Helen Oxenbury, the illustrator of We're Going on a Bear Hunt, 

and Timothy Knapman, the author of Soon, comes the story of a 

brother and sister, and their adventure in the woods. 

Owl Bat Bat Owl, Mary-Louise Fitzpatrick

From award-winning author and illustrator, Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick, 

comes a stunning wordless picture book that celebrates family, 

friendship and the power of togetherness. Mummy Owl and her

 three little owls live happily on their spacious branch.

Penguin Problems, Lane Smith, Jory John

Little Penguin has problems: his beak is cold;

 there’s snow everywhere; the water smells salty; 

he waddles; he looks the same as everybody else. 

No – it’s not easy being a penguin!

Du Iz Tak, Carson Ellis

In her follow-up to the internationally acclaimed Home, 

Carson Ellis invites readers to imagine the dramatic possibilities

 to be found in the natural world ... even the humblest back garden!

We Found a Hat, Jon Klassen

Hold on to your hats! From the Kate Greenaway-winning 

creator of I Want My Hat Back and This Is Not My Hat comes 

the much-anticipated conclusion to the celebrated Hat trilogy.

Book of the Month! A Child of Books by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston

It's here! Today is the day that A Child of Books, created by author-illustrator Oliver Jeffers and typographical artist Sam Winston, publishes in the UK.

"I am a Child of Books. I come from a world of stories and upon my imagination I float."

A Child of Books is a completely unique reading experience, blending illustration and the printed and written word in a way that explodes conventional perceptions of both. This is the first time Oliver has collaboratively written and illustrated a book with another artist - and the first time Sam has made a children's book! Together they have created an immersive story of discovery; a picture book to cherish forever and a homage to classic children's literature. 

We've shared lots of exciting videos, interviews and trailers over the past months and we've collected them all together here. In May, we were delighted to work with Waterstones to share our incredible book trailer with all our lovely picture book fans. 

And earlier this week we were absolutely over the moon to share an exclusive video interview all about the inspiration and process behind A Child of Books. 

Here's part one. 

And here's part two. (We know - we spoil you!)

And, it wouldn't be publication day without an exclusive behind the scenes look at the sketches and development work that went into the characters and spreads of A Child of Books. There's a sneak peek below but click HERE for the full experience. 

We've uploaded a quick interview that you can download and print from the Picture Book Party activity sheet section by clicking HERE.

To celebrate publication, we have three gorgeous A Child of Books goody bags to give away to our lucky readers. To WIN email competitions@walker.co.uk with the subject line I AM A CHILD OF BOOKS to enter. Closing date 29/09/2015. Terms and Conditions apply. 

And, to say goodbye, a note from Oliver and Sam

'From the very beginning we both wanted to create a tale that celebrated our own love of classic children's literature with an added modern twist. For us it was about capturing some of the magic that happens when you first get lost in a timeless story, but doing it in a way that readers haven't seen before. We both wanted to pay homage to the amazing books we loved in our own childhoods, and it turned out that we used a whole library of these books to illustrate A Child of Books. We wanted this book to celebrate some of the great imaginations of the past, yet also (hopefully) inspire new generations to come.'